Skip to main content
Join Now
Team Avatar
Michigan State

Tom Izzo bluntly addresses Michigan State's free throw issues

Barkley-Truaxby:Barkley Truax•02/19/25•

BarkleyTruax

Michigan State Spartans head coach Tom Izzo reacts during the first half against the Minnesota Golden Gophers at Williams Arena. - Matt Krohn, USA TODAY Sports
Michigan State Spartans head coach Tom Izzo reacts during the first half against the Minnesota Golden Gophers at Williams Arena. - Matt Krohn, USA TODAY Sports

No. 14 Michigan State bounced back in a big way on Tuesday night after defeating No. 13 Purdue 75-66 at home after previously losing three of its first five games to start February.

Four players scored in double figures for the Spartans as nine of head coach Tom Izzo’s players logged significant minutes for Michigan State during the win. As sweet as the victory was, Izzo couldn’t help but get on his team for their performance at the free throw line.

“Everybody gave us something, and that’s what good teams do,” Izzo said after the win. “Tonight was a couple of other guys’ nights. But everybody shot the ball – I say Jaden [Akins], he was 3 for 8, but he just missed a couple of wide-open shots that I think he normally hits, he missed a couple of free throws that I think he normally makes.

“We’re gonna have to correct that, because the free-throw shooting two of the last three games it’s gone down a little bit, so you can bet it’s gonna be addressed.”

Izzo’s team shoots 80% from the free-throw line as a team — a number that the Spartans haven’t reached in each of their last two games. Despite winning both games, they’ve shot 66.4% from the line during that stretch.

Despite the drop in production at the line, the Spartans shot 15 for 21 (74.1%) from the line during their win against Purdue. The issue that Izzo has with his team’s production at the charity stripe may stem from the win over Illinois on the road, where his team only managed to get to the line 13 times. They made eight of them, good for 61.5% as a team. This came after they shot 84% (21 of 25) from the line during the 71-67 loss to Indiana on Feb. 11.

As Izzo addresses the issue, Michigan State will move on to its next matchup. They’re set to travel to Ann Arbor for a matchup against No. 12 Michigan in a top-25 showdown between two bitter rivals, who are also the top two teams in the current Big Ten standings.

Tip-off is set for Friday at 8 p.m. ET live on FOX. It will be the first of two matchups between the Spartans and Wolverines this season, as the two rival programs will face each other in East Lansing on March 9 for the regular season finale.